A quick housekeeping note. Rosie is still doing great. Thank you all for the good thoughts, well wishes, prayers, and donations.

Air raid alerts are up over all of central Ukraine as of 7:10 PM EDT/2:10 AM local time in Ukraine.

As President Zelenskyy was meeting with President Biden, Vice President Harris, and addressing the UN General Assembly, Russia was attacking more civilians and civilian targets.

Russia is now almost exclusively targeting residential buildings.

Kramatorsk

pic.twitter.com/iTfNwktNCO

— Jay in Kyiv (@JayinKyiv) September 25, 2024

A 70-year-old woman lost her life under the rubble of her own home in Kharkiv. Russia continues to destroy civilian lives, turning homes into graves.

place_kharkiv pic.twitter.com/SV8KW0j3hs

— Iryna Voichuk (@IrynaVoichuk) September 25, 2024

Here is President Zelenskyy’s address at the UN General Assembly. Video below, English transcript after the jump.

There Can Be No Just Peace Without Ukraine – Speech of the President at the UN General Assembly

25 September 2024 – 18:45

Dear leaders,

Your excellencies,

Today, I want to tell you about a day that has already passed, and a day that must never come.

On the night of March 4th, 2022, I received one of the most terrifying reports since the beginning of a full-scale Russian invasion against Ukraine.

The report was about Russian tanks firing directly at the buildings of our Ukrainian nuclear power plant. The Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant. The largest one in Europe. Six nuclear reactors. The Russian army stormed this facility just as brutally as any other during this war. Without thinking about the consequences. Possibly disastrous. This was one of the most horrifying moments of the war, when no one could know how Russian strikes on the nuclear facility would end, and everyone in Ukraine was reminded of what Chornobyl means.

Now, the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant remains occupied by Russian forces. Unfortunately. And it’s at risk of a nuclear incident. This is the major source of radiation danger in Europe, possibly in the world.

That’s why, in the Peace Formula I presented, the first point is about nuclear safety.

In Ukraine, we know exactly what we’re dealing with. And I want to thank you – the General Assembly members – for adopting a resolution in July this year on the safety of nuclear facilities in Ukraine. Most in the world understand – what’s at stake. The General Assembly demanded that Russia return control of the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant to Ukraine. Only then real nuclear security will return to Europe and the world.

And now about the day that must never come.

Since Russia can’t defeat our people’s resistance on the battlefield, Putin is looking for other ways to break the Ukrainian spirit. One of his methods is targeting our energy infrastructure. These are deliberate Russian attacks on our power plants, and the entire energy grid. As of today, Russia has destroyed all our thermal power plants and a large part of our hydroelectric capacity. This is how Putin is preparing for winter – hoping to torment millions, millions of Ukrainians… Ordinary families – women, children… Ordinary towns, ordinary villages. Putin wants to leave them in the dark and cold this winter, forcing Ukraine to suffer and surrender. Just imagine, please, your country with 80 percent of its energy system gone – with such a destroyed part of the system. What kind of life would that be?

Recently, I received yet another alarming report from our intelligence.

Now, Putin does seem to be planning attacks on our nuclear power plants and their infrastructure, aiming to disconnect the plants from the power grid. With the help of satellites, by the way, ladies and gentlemen, by the way, satellites of other countries, Russia is getting images and detailed information about the infrastructure of our nuclear power plants.

But what does this really threaten?

Any missile or drone strike, any critical incident in the energy system, could lead to a nuclear disaster. A day like that must never come. And Moscow needs to understand this. And this depends, in part, on your determination to put pressure on the aggressor. These are nuclear power plants! They must be safe.

Ladies and gentlemen!

Two years ago, in the fall of 2022, I proposed a comprehensive strategy to end the war – and to ensure security. And I presented the Peace Formula at a highly inclusive political platform for world leaders – the G20 Summit in Indonesia – representing billions of citizens from all parts of the globe.

And it’s important for us that all these people can understand us – understand that Ukraine wants to end this war more than anyone in the world.

War always poses a threat to many. You all see in the media and read in reports what is happening in Ukraine because of Russia’s war – it’s something, many are imagining happening to themselves. And, yes, the smoke from fires in war-torn cities can reach other countries. And if, God forbid, Russia causes a nuclear disaster at one of our nuclear power plants, radiation won’t respect state borders, and unfortunately, various nations could feel the devastating effects. Many are concerned, but the deepest understanding of war is always found in the home it destroys.

It is the Ukrainian people who feel the full pain of this war. It’s Ukrainian children who are learning to distinguish the sounds of different types of artillery and drones because of Russia’s war. It’s our people who are forcefully separated by occupation because Putin decided he could do whatever he wants. It’s our heroic soldiers who are giving their lives to defend our country from invaders trying to steal our land. That’s why we say, rightfully so – there can be no just peace without Ukraine.

And I thank every leader, every country that supports us in this, that understands us – that sees how Russia, a country more than twenty times larger than Ukraine in territory, still wants even more land, more land – which is insane – and is seizing it, day by day, while wanting to destroy its neighbor. And Russia found very special buddies for that – North Korea and Iran, a telling choice of friends. Now every neighbor of Russia in Europe and Central Asia feels that the war could come to them as well, and just think – what kind of losses that would mean for the world.

And I thank nearly one hundred nations and international organizations that have supported the Peace Formula. It’s truly a global community – Africa, Asia, Europe, Latin America, North America, the Pacific region – all united by the Peace Formula.

And I’m glad that the first Peace Summit was so reminding of the UN General Assembly – everyone was equal. All nations that participated in the Peace Summit – large and small – no veto right, no blocking authority. Those that have been independent for ages, and those that have only recently gained independence. Those that have gone through wars themselves, and those accustomed to peace. All. All were equal – that is what Russia hates the most and cannot control, that’s why Russia says the Peace Formula doesn’t suit it.

Here at the UN, I’ve already met with leaders from India and Guatemala, Japan and Italy, Türkiye and Finland, Canada and Paraguay, Slovenia, Germany and others. And my meetings will continue. These are different, absolutely, parts of the world and various political ways of life, but they share the same understanding – peace is needed, and it must be a real, just peace.

Unfortunately, at the UN, it’s impossible to truly and fairly resolve matters of war and peace because too much depends in the Security Council on the veto power. When the aggressor exercises veto power, the UN is powerless to stop the war. But the Peace Formula can – once again, there is no veto power in it. That’s why it’s the best opportunity for peace – everyone is equal, and it’s effective and comprehensive.

When some propose alternatives, half-hearted settlement plans – so-called ‘sets of principles’ – it not only ignores the interests and suffering of Ukrainians, who are affected by the war the most, it not only ignores reality, but also gives Putin the political space to continue the war and pressure the world to bring more nations under control. Any parallel or alternative attempts to seek peace are, in fact, efforts to achieve a lull instead of an end to the war, as a global initiative – the Peace Formula – has already existed for two years. And maybe somebody wants a Nobel Prize for their political biography for frozen truce instead of real peace, but the only prizes Putin will give you in return are more suffering and disasters.

We must restore nuclear safety.

Energy must stop being used as a weapon.

We must ensure food security.

We need to bring home all our captured soldiers and civilians forcibly deported to Russia.

We must uphold the UN Charter and guarantee our right – Ukraine’s right – to territorial integrity and sovereignty, just as we do for any other nation.

We need to withdraw the Russian occupiers, which will bring an end to the hostilities in Ukraine.

We must hold those responsible for war crimes accountable.

We need to prevent ecocide and stop the destruction of nature caused by the war.

And we must not allow a second or third phase of this Russian invasion.

And we need to make it clear – the war is over.

This is the Peace Formula.

What part of this could be unacceptable to anyone who upholds the UN Charter?

If someone in the world seeks alternatives to any of these points or tries to ignore any of them, it likely means they themselves want to do a part of what Putin is doing – the point they ignore reveals the desire they are hiding.

And when the Chinese-Brazilian duo tries to grow into a choir of voices – with someone in Europe, with someone in Africa, saying something alternative to a full and just peace, the question arises – what is the true interest?

Everyone must understand – you won’t boost your power at Ukraine’s expense.

And the world has already been through colonial wars and conspiracies of great powers at the expense of those who are smaller. Every country – including China, Brazil, European nations, African nations, Middle East – all understand why this must remain in the past. And Ukrainians will never accept, will never accept why anyone in the world believes that such a brutal colonial past, which suits no one today, can be imposed on Ukraine now instead of a normal, peaceful life.

I want peace for my people – real peace and just peace.

And I’m asking for your support – from all nations of the world. We do not divide the world.

I ask the same of you – do not divide the world. Be united Nations, and that will bring us peace.

Thank you.

Glory to Ukraine!

And here is his address to the G7+Ukraine meeting. Video followed by the English transcript.

Today, We Are Laying the Foundation for the Architecture of Recovery – Speech by the President at the G7+ Ukraine Meeting

26 September 2024 – 01:05

Thank you so much!

Dear President Biden,

Dear leaders, dear our friends,

I’m grateful to all of you for your unity in protecting lives. We previously gathered at the NATO Summit in Vilnius to strengthen our defense cooperation.

We do value the G7 security declaration and the 26 bilateral security agreements, which fortify us all. And now, more than 30 countries and the EU have agreed to the declaration, truly strong declaration focused on rebuilding Ukraine after the hostilities.

This is a shared commitment to help rebuild Ukraine and support our path to the EU.

It involves coordinating recovery efforts through the Ukrainian Donor Platform, ensuring that our joint ideas become a reality.

And it’s crucial that this support becomes tangible this year. That’s why additional financial resources are planned by the end of the year, with access to $50 billion in immobilized assets from the aggressor state – Russia, which brought this war upon us.

This reflects our shared vision of life – we protect people, and we ensure that people have the opportunities to live.

And it is absolutely justified that those who help us withstand now will be the first to benefit together with Ukraine from the large-scale reconstruction. Security and prosperity are tightly intertwined, and one cannot exist without the other.

Sadly, throughout history, wars have too often shattered the destinies of generations – lasting a few years but poisoning lives for decades.

Together, we can prevent this now.

We must not leave behind ruins that would spread resentment and bitterness after this war.

This task can only be achieved together.

After the devastating Second World War, the Allies launched the Marshall Plan, which gave peace the strength to become truly lasting.

Today, we are laying the foundation for a similar architecture of recovery – one that will promote peace for Ukraine and all of Europe and the general welfare.

I thank President Biden and all you, friends, and Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni for their support in organizing today’s meeting and for their unwavering leadership in protecting our lives.

Thank you all, my friends!

I am confident – life will prevail. Thank you!

Слава Україні!

FULL TEXT!! Joint Declaration of Support for Recovery and Reconstruction of Ukraine

“We, the Leaders of the Group of Seven (G7), reaffirm our unwavering support for Ukraine today and in the future, in war and in peace. As stated in the Apulia-G7 Leaders’ Communiqué,…

— Alex Raufoglu (@ralakbar) September 25, 2024

FULL TEXT!! Joint Declaration of Support for Recovery and Reconstruction of Ukraine

“We, the Leaders of the Group of Seven (G7), reaffirm our unwavering support for Ukraine today and in the future, in war and in peace. As stated in the Apulia-G7 Leaders’ Communiqué, together with international partners, we remain determined to provide military, budget, humanitarian, and reconstruction support to Ukraine and its people and are strongly committed to helping Ukraine meet its urgent short-term financing needs and to assisting with Ukraine’s long-term recovery and reconstruction.

We dispel any false notion that time is on Russia’s side or that Russia can prevail by causing Ukraine to fail economically. Russia’s war of aggression has wrought tremendous damage upon Ukrainian cities and infrastructure. Today, we reaffirm a series of commitments to counter its effects.

First, Russia’s responsibility under international law to pay for the damage it is causing is clear. We reaffirm that, consistent with all applicable laws and our respective legal systems, Russia’s sovereign assets in our jurisdictions will remain immobilized until Russia ends its aggression and pays for the damage it has caused to Ukraine.

Second, we commit to use our economic assistance to ensure Ukraine maintains macro-financial stability, to repair and build critical infrastructure including in the energy sector, to boost economic growth, to support social resilience as well as the implementation of priority reforms. These include improving the business climate, strengthening anti-corruption efforts, implementing the justice system reform and promoting of the rule of law within the context of the EU accession process. We will also support Ukraine to ensure rapid and transparent absorption of donor financing.

Third we are continuing our joint work to implement the decision made at the G7 Summit in Apulia to launch Extraordinary Revenue Acceleration (ERA) Loans for Ukraine by the end of the year, in order to make available approximately USD 50 billion in additional funding to Ukraine. The loans will be serviced and repaid by the future flows of extraordinary revenues stemming from the immobilization of Russian sovereign assets held in the European Union and other relevant jurisdictions. Part of these funds will be directed to military assistance to Ukraine. We will maintain solidarity in our commitment to providing this support to Ukraine.

Fourth, we will continue to pursue our vision also by strategizing, coordinating and steering our support for Ukraine’s economic recovery and reconstruction through the Ukraine Donor Platform. This will include catalyzing private sector contributions as well as leveraging bilateral, European Union, and international financial institution funding, and encouraging Ukraine’s reform agenda in view of the country’s accession path to the EU. We will continue to support Ukraine’s human capital through our ongoing response to humanitarian needs and social protection.

Finally, we will continue to assess and monitor progress on these commitments through Ukraine Donor Platform meetings and the annual Ukraine Recovery Conference, the next edition of which will be hosted by Italy in 2025.

In order to implement the above-mentioned commitments, we will each work to provide Ukraine with specific, bilateral support aligned with this joint declaration and with the bilateral security agreements and arrangements that have been negotiated and signed with Ukraine.

For its part, Ukraine is committed to implementing its economic, judiciary, anti-corruption, corporate governance, defense, public administration, public investment management and law enforcement reforms. These reforms are necessary and will be vital to enabling long-term support for Ukrainian reconstruction and recovery.

Our message is clear: we remain committed to the strategic objective of a free, independent, democratic and sovereign Ukraine, within its internationally recognized borders, that is prosperous and able to defend itself. We highlight the importance of an inclusive and gender-responsive recovery and the need to address the different needs of women, children and disabled persons as well as other population groups who have been disproportionately affected by Russia’s war of aggression. Through our collective support for Ukrainian reconstruction and recovery, we will ensure that Russia fails in its objectives to subjugate Ukraine – and that Ukraine emerges from Russia’s war of aggression with a modernized, vibrant, inclusive society and innovative economy, resilient to Russian threats. Other countries that wish to contribute to this effort in support of Ukraine’s long-term reconstruction and recovery may join this Joint Declaration at any time.”

The cost:

This is the Lukianivske Memorial Military Cemetery in Kyiv.

This quiet place in the middle of a noisy city, apart from myriads of mass graves from the WWII era, is now the resting place of some of our well-known soldiers and officers of the Russian war on Ukraine.

Guys killed… pic.twitter.com/F5ET5hBA3s

— Illia Ponomarenko (@IAPonomarenko) September 25, 2024

This is the Lukianivske Memorial Military Cemetery in Kyiv.

This quiet place in the middle of a noisy city, apart from myriads of mass graves from the WWII era, is now the resting place of some of our well-known soldiers and officers of the Russian war on Ukraine.

Guys killed in action in 2014…2015…2016….2018… many of those we met in Donbas as reporters long before 2022. Airborne, mechanized infantry, volunteer battalions.

So many of those who sacrificed their lives throughout this damned decade of Russia’s most disgraceful war and Ukraine’s greatest valor.

The war for Ukraine’s survival continues even though there is no shortage of petty, pathetic minds eager to spit on Ukraine and its defenders and gladly lick the boot of an egregious war criminal and KGB mafia boss bathing in blood for 25 years.

Washington DC:

We’ll start with the good:

For the first time aid package will include American Joint Standoff Weapon (JSOW) glide bombs – ABC News.

The bombs, can be deployed by Ukraine’s F-16 fighters, have retractable wings that help them reach targets up to 70 miles away. https://t.co/HFYskNAxPu https://t.co/yqxOMkTsKw pic.twitter.com/R0apHhBlbm

— Special Kherson Cat (@bayraktar_1love) September 25, 2024

ABC News has the details:

The Biden administration on Thursday announced $375 million more in security assistance for Ukraine, which for the first time will include American Joint Standoff Weapon (JSOW) glide bombs, a U.S. defense official told ABC News.

The bombs, which can be deployed by Ukraine’s new F-16 fighters, have retractable wings that help them reach targets up to 70 miles away. There are several versions of JSOW, but the ones being sent to Ukraine are equipped with cluster munitions, according to the official.

The U.S. will also soon announce more than $2 billion in aid for Ukraine under the Ukraine Security Assistance Initiative (USAI), the official told ABC News on Wednesday. Unlike the $350 million package, which will draw equipment from existing American stockpiles for Ukraine, USAI funds are used for contracts to procure assistance, which can take months or years to materialize. The coming USAI funds will largely go toward restocking Ukraine with munitions, according to the official.

The commitment to send JSOW glide bombs comes as Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy is in the United States to make the case for global support, speaking before the United Nations General Assembly on Wednesday in New York, with plans to present what he has called his “victory plan” to President Joe Biden at the White House on Thursday.

“The plan of victory is strengthening of Ukraine,” Zelenskyy said during a sit-down interview with “Good Morning America” co-anchor Robin Roberts on Monday. “That’s why we’re asking our friends, our allies, to strengthen us. It’s very important.”

Zelenskyy hasn’t publicly shared the details of his victory plan ahead of his upcoming meeting with Biden, but said it includes specific military supply requests, as well as proposals for potential security guarantees for Ukraine after the war. Zelenskyy’s chief of staff this week confirmed that includes Ukraine being invited to join NATO.

A source close to the Ukrainian president told ABC News the plan consists of five key points, four of which are to be implemented now and one after the war is over. The plan also includes specific figures and amounts of military assistance.

Former President Donald Trump said last week that he would “probably” meet with Zelenskyy, but this is no longer expected, according to sources familiar with the matter.

That’s all the good we’ve got coming out of DC regarding Ukraine. What we don’t know is what the Biden administration’s restrictions will or will not be on the JSOWs.

WSJ: “US ‘Unimpressed’ With Ukraine’s Victory Plan”

This is rich coming from the Biden Admin.

What were they expecting to see? To win a war you need weapons and the ability to use those weapons freely against the enemy. The Biden Admin continues to deny Ukraine both. pic.twitter.com/U2CMngFwuS

— Colby Badhwar (@ColbyBadhwar) September 25, 2024

According to Reuters, the United States plans to announce more than $8 billion in military aid to Ukraine tomorrow.

The agency notes that the Biden administration is in urgent talks with Congress to allow it to use $5.6 billion in military aid for Ukraine before September 30,…

— WarTranslated (Dmitri) (@wartranslated) September 25, 2024

According to Reuters, the United States plans to announce more than $8 billion in military aid to Ukraine tomorrow.

The agency notes that the Biden administration is in urgent talks with Congress to allow it to use $5.6 billion in military aid for Ukraine before September 30, the end of the federal fiscal year.

Congress went into recess today, two days earlier, as soon as they passed the CR. They will not be back for over a month. Whomever the Biden administration is in urgent talks with it, it is NOT Congress.

The only thing in DC making the Biden administration’s continued strategic malpractice look good is:

Will Republicans snub Zelensky this week? The Ukrainian president said over the weekend that he had meetings lined up with Trump and top Republicans in Congress. Now some in the Trump camp say there’s no meeting on the books and Speaker Johnson told @VOANews he’ll be out of… https://t.co/VZZnNKE2qD

— Christopher Miller (@ChristopherJM) September 25, 2024

Here’s the full text of Miller’s tweet:

Will Republicans snub Zelensky this week? The Ukrainian president said over the weekend that he had meetings lined up with Trump and top Republicans in Congress. Now some in the Trump camp say there’s no meeting on the books and Speaker Johnson told @VOANews he’ll be out of Washington when Zelensky’s there tomorrow. Kyiv has not commented.

And of the quoted tweet:

EXCLUSIVE: @SpeakerJohnson on meeting with @ZelenskyyUa: “I don’t think we actually going to be in town on Thu. We have our schedule changed on the floor. So, it’s very fluid. There is a hurricane coming on the Golf coast. So a lot of us would be dispersed and people would go back home because of that. So, im not sure yet”

Believe it or not, it actually gets worse!

You have reduced an entire nation of people and our very survival to a mere talking point in your political debate.

You have done so a long time ago when you deleyed military assistance package, and you are escalating it now.

Shame on you! Shame on anyone on any side who is… https://t.co/y1iAy7hvjt

— Kate from Kharkiv (@BohuslavskaKate) September 25, 2024

You have reduced an entire nation of people and our very survival to a mere talking point in your political debate.

You have done so a long time ago when you deleyed military assistance package, and you are escalating it now.

Shame on you! Shame on anyone on any side who is doing that.

Putin has a medal for you.

I figure that when Viktor Orban endorsed Trump, it was not an act of foreign interference.

— Illia Ponomarenko (@IAPonomarenko) September 25, 2024

I’m not even going to include Trump’s remarks today regarding President Zelenskyy and Ukraine. I will say that 1) there is definitely something weird going on with Trump’s right eye, it no longer opens all the way and 2) if he keeps going with a darker shade of face spackle every day, by the end of the week he’ll have been America’s second Black president. I’m pretty sure today’s color was roasted turkey skin.

The UK:

If there is, hopefully, history in the future, this speech deserves to be in the history books. https://t.co/WUogNg8ryB

— Euan MacDonald (@Euan_MacDonald) September 25, 2024

In my opinion, bilateral security guarantees, similar to those with South Korea, with countries like the UK or the US, with detailed agreements could serve as a realistic alternative to NATO. Yes, it won’t be easy, but it may be a more realistic option than NATO membership https://t.co/fq5lmQVETa

— Tatarigami_UA (@Tatarigami_UA) September 25, 2024

The People’s Republic of China (PRC):

“IEMZ Kupol, a subsidiary of Russian state-owned weapons company Almaz-Antey, has developed & flight-tested a new drone…called Garpiya-3 (G3) in China w/ help of local specialists, a/c to…a report Kupol sent to the Ru def. ministry earlier this year” https://t.co/zaRLsgmjMI

— Shashank Joshi (@shashj) September 25, 2024

Reuters has the details:

Russia has established a weapons programme in China to develop and produce long-range attack drones for use in the war against Ukraine, according to two sources from a European intelligence agency and documents reviewed by Reuters.

IEMZ Kupol, a subsidiary of Russian state-owned arms company Almaz-Antey, has developed and flight-tested a new drone model called Garpiya-3 (G3) in China with the help of local specialists, according to one of the documents, a report that Kupol sent to the Russian defence ministry earlier this year outlining its work.

Kupol told the defence ministry in a subsequent update that it was able to produce drones including the G3 at scale at a factory in China so the weapons could be deployed in the “special military operation” in Ukraine, the term Moscow uses for the war.

Kupol, Almaz-Antey and the Russian defence ministry did not respond to requests for comment for this article. China’s foreign ministry told Reuters it was not aware of such a project, adding that Beijing had strict control measures on the export of drones, or unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs).

Fabian Hinz, a research fellow at the International Institute for Strategic Studies, a London-based defence think-tank, said the delivery of UAVs from China to Russia, if confirmed, would be a significant development.

“If you look at what China is known to have delivered so far, it was mostly dual-use goods – it was components, sub-components, that could be used in weapon systems,” he told Reuters. “This is what has been reported so far. But what we haven’t really seen, at least in the open source, are documented transfers of whole weapon systems.”

Still, Samuel Bendett, an adjunct senior fellow at the Center for a New American Security, a Washington-based think tank, said Beijing would be hesitant to open itself up to international sanctions for helping Moscow’s war machine. He said more information was needed to establish that China was playing host to production of Russian military drones.

The White House National Security Council said it was deeply concerned by the Reuters report of the drones programme, which it said appeared to be an instance of a Chinese company providing lethal assistance to a U.S.-sanctioned Russian firm.

The White House has not seen anything to suggest the Chinese government was aware of the transactions involved, but China has a responsibility to ensure companies aren’t providing lethal aid to Russia for use by its military, a spokesperson added.

Asked about the Reuters report, a NATO spokesperson said via email: “These reports are deeply concerning and Allies are consulting on this matter.”

“The Chinese government has a responsibility to ensure its companies are not providing lethal assistance to Russia,” added the spokesperson, Farah Dakhlallah. “China cannot continue to fuel the largest conflict in Europe since the Second World War without this impacting its interests and reputation.”The G3 can travel about 2,000 km (1,200 miles) with a payload of 50 kg (110 pounds), according to the reports to the Russian defence ministry from Kupol, which was placed under U.S. sanctions in December 2023. Samples of the G3 and some other drone models made in China have been delivered to Kupol in Russia for further testing, again with the involvement of Chinese experts, they said.

The documents do not identify the Chinese drone specialists involved in the project that it outlined, and Reuters was unable to determine their identity.

Kupol has taken delivery of seven military drones made in China, including two G3s, at its headquarters in the Russian city of Izhevsk, according to the two separate documents reviewed by Reuters, which are invoices sent to Kupol in the summer by a Russian firm that the two European intelligence sources said serves as an intermediary with Chinese suppliers. The invoices, one of which requests payment in Chinese yuan, do not specify delivery dates or identify the suppliers in China.

The two intelligence sources said the delivery of the sample drones to Kupol was the first concrete evidence their agency had found of whole UAVs manufactured in China being delivered to Russia since the Ukraine war began in February 2022.

They asked that neither they nor their organisation be identified due to the sensitivity of the information.

They also requested certain details related to the documents be withheld, including their precise dates.The sources showed Reuters five documents in all, including two Kupol reports to the ministry in the first half of the year and the two invoices, to support their claims of the existence of a Russian project in China to manufacture drones for use in Ukraine. The programme has not previously been reported.

Kupol’s reports did not give more precise locations for sites related to the project. Reuters was also unable to determine whether the defence ministry gave the company the green light to proceed with the serial production proposed.

Beijing has repeatedly denied that China or Chinese companies have supplied Russia with weapons for use in Ukraine, saying the country remains neutral.

In response to questions for this article, the foreign ministry told Reuters that China’s position presented a contrast with other nations with “double standards on arms sales” whom it said had “added fuel to the flames of the Ukrainian crisis”.

The ministry said earlier this month that there were no international restrictions on China’s trade with Russia, when responding to a Reuters report that Kupol had started to produce the Garpiya-A1 long-range military drone in Russia using Chinese engines and parts.

The new documents reported here indicate state-owned Kupol has gone further by sourcing complete UAVs from China.

More at the link.

The Starlink Snowflake:

1/ Some very alarming developments regarding Russia’s use of Shahed drones: Shahed equipped with Starlink from SpaceX has been shot down over Ukraine for the first time pic.twitter.com/P0ht3js57f

— Maria Avdeeva (@maria_avdv) September 25, 2024

3/ With a flight range of up to 2,000 km, this transformation turns Shahed into a powerful intelligence tool, in addition to its deadly explosive payload.

Will be interesting to track how Russia is acquiring these Starlinks pic.twitter.com/mNqpDWDWK8

— Maria Avdeeva (@maria_avdv) September 25, 2024

Defense Express has the details (machine translated):

During today’s night attack, in which 28 of the 32 drones were shot down, the Ukrainian Shahed-136, which was equipped with a Starlink satellite connection from SpaceX, was destroyed.

Relevant photos Defense Express received from its own sources. They can be seen with a satellite dish, on which the serial numbers remain. This should allow you to explore the supply channels of the Starlink terminal.

At the same time, the question of when the Russian Federation will start installing Starlink on its long-range UAVs was objectively only a matter of time. Because before that the enemy had already experimented with 4G modems with Ukrainian SIM cards.

And now we are talking about a very wide and powerful channel of feedback with the drone, the ability to transfer information from it and change the flight task at any distance. That is, the transformation of Shahed-a, first of all, into a reconnaissance tool.

Starlink may be needed by the enemy to transmit intelligence information, such as that collected by radio equipment on Ukrainian air defense positions. Or, in the case of equipping the drone with cameras – an image. And thanks to Starlink in the Russian Federation, they can use Shahed as a highly long-range barrage ammunition with the possibility of an adult, due to an additional camera, and damage even moving targets.

The choice of the Shahed platform for such purposes may be due to its range capabilities of about 2,000 km and a fairly significant free volume in the middle of the fuselage. It can also be related to “creativity” in Alabuzi, where these drones gather.

It will be recalled that although Starlink does not work or sell in Russia, the Russians buy it through third countries. At the same time this problem in the United States is trying to combat, but the problem is far from being solved.

But Washington’s leader needs to speed up a bit on this issue, because Shahed-a from Starlink is about the unlimited range of control of the shock UAV with a range of up to 2,000 km. Because given the Russian Federation’s cooperation not only with other Islamic countries, but also with terrorist groups, this is already a threat not only to Ukraine.

Iran, Yemen, and Russia:

If Russia really has decided to transfer anti-ship missiles to the Houthis then it reduces Russian leverage over the US when it comes to any decision over enabling Ukrainian strikes into Russia. Makes much more sense for Russia to hold this in reserve than to go ahead now. https://t.co/iuVBsZvFOw

— Shashank Joshi (@shashj) September 24, 2024

“Iran has brokered ongoing secret talks between Russia and Yemen’s Houthi rebels to transfer anti-ship missiles to the militant group, three Western and regional sources said, a development that highlights Tehran’s deepening ties to Moscow.

Seven sources said that Russia has yet to decide to transfer the Yakhont missiles – also known as P-800 Oniks – which experts said would allow the militant group to more accurately strike commercial vessels in the Red Sea and increase the threat to the U.S. and European warships defending them.”

@JonathanLanday @PHREUTERS @IrishJReuters

https://reuters.com/world/middle-east/iran-brokering-talks-send-advanced-russian-missiles-yemens-houthis-sources-say-2024-09-24/

From Reuters:

Iran has brokered ongoing secret talks between Russia and Yemen’s Houthi rebels to transfer anti-ship missiles to the militant group, three Western and regional sources said, a development that highlights Tehran’s deepening ties to Moscow.

Seven sources said that Russia has yet to decide to transfer the Yakhont missiles – also known as P-800 Oniks – which experts said would allow the militant group to more accurately strike commercial vessels in the Red Sea and increase the threat to the U.S. and European warships defending them.

The Wall Street Journal reported in July that Russia was considering sending the missiles. Iran’s role as an intermediary has not been previously reported.

The Houthis have launched repeated drone and missile strikes on ships in the crucial Red Sea shipping channels since November to show support for Palestinians in the Gaza war with Israel.

They have sunk at least two vessels and seized another, disrupting global maritime trade by forcing shipping firms to divert cargos and, according to industry sources, driven up insurance costs for ships plying the Red Sea.

In response, the United States and Britain have struck Houthi positions but have failed to stop the group’s attacks.

Two regional officials aware of the talks said that the Houthis and Russians met in Tehran at least twice this year and that the talks to provide dozens of the missiles, which have a range of about 300 km (186 miles), were ongoing with further Tehran meetings expected in coming weeks.

Russia has previously supplied the Yakhont missile to Iran-backed Hezbollah.

One of the sources said the talks started under Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi, who died in a helicopter crash in May.

“Russia is negotiating with the Houthis for the transfer of Yakhont supersonic anti-ship missiles,” said a Western intelligence source. “The Iranians are brokering the talks but do not want to have their signature over it.”

Neither Iran’s U.N. mission nor the Russian Defense Ministry responded to requests for comment.

“We have no knowledge of what you have mentioned,” said Mohamed Abdel-Salam, the official spokesman for Yemen’s Houthis.

A senior U.S. official declined to name the specific systems that could be transferred but confirmed that Russia has been discussing supplying missiles to the Houthis, calling the development “very worrisome.”

A U.S. Defense Department official said any efforts to bolster the Houthis’ capabilities would “undermine the shared international interest in global freedom of navigation and stability in the Red Sea and broader Middle East.”

More at the link.

Putin has made another empty nuclear threat because he knows that there are two Americans that will take it seriously: Joseph R. Biden and Jake Sullivan.

Sullivan believes!

— Kate from Kharkiv (@BohuslavskaKate) September 25, 2024

Strictly speaking, does this change much? Russia’s existing doctrine defines a nuclear threshold by severity of threat (“…when the very existence of the state is in jeopardy”) rather than the nuclear status of the aggressor.https://t.co/jfE7U0QB2g. pic.twitter.com/qqtumnOubV

— Shashank Joshi (@shashj) September 25, 2024

So what then is the practical impact of change in language? Surely just to amplify uncertainty over whether Ru might use nuclear weapons v Ukraine by further diluting neg sec assurances and use v NATO by implicating alliance in Ukr conventional attacks. https://t.co/bhVx5Oa2l4

— Shashank Joshi (@shashj) September 25, 2024

There’s nothing shadowy about the attacks Russia has been perpetrating across NATO and EU territory for almost two decades—it’s war. pic.twitter.com/byS5QLA7db

— U.S. Helsinki Commission (@HelsinkiComm) September 24, 2024

Who could have possibly imagined for a moment that all of these Russian attacks since Putin asserted that Russia was waging a world war at the 2007 Munich Security Conference was actually, in fact, a war. Eez a puzzlement for sure.

Vovchansk:

Ukraine’s GUR special task teams at the Vovchansk Plant pic.twitter.com/Irx3Nllq1X

— Illia Ponomarenko (@IAPonomarenko) September 25, 2024

Kharkiv:

genocidal war! direct strike of russian #aibombshells on an apartment buildings #kharkiv

2apartment buildings are destroyed

4people died, >30 injured

We brought with us a Dlegation from& to witness these #masswarcrimes #letukrainestrikeback #russiaisaterroriststate pic.twitter.com/t91N91eZ5z

— Mariia Mezentseva MP (@mezentseva_dep) September 25, 2024

Kherson:

#Kherson A piano in flames in a city arts center after a Russian aerial bomb attack this morning.

A dancer I am interviewing now is heartbroken: she spent her childhood here. pic.twitter.com/7DYjFsVkCf

— Zarina Zabrisky (@ZarinaZabrisky) September 25, 2024

The Donetsk front:

HIMARS strike using cluster munition on Russian military convoy on the Donetsk front.

Video by @14reg_army https://t.co/qebMgyA3Mw pic.twitter.com/GRayOYqPIM

— Special Kherson Cat (@bayraktar_1love) September 25, 2024

You know what this means!

That’s enough for tonight.

Your daily Patron!

There are no new Patron tweets or videos tonight, so here’s another back episode of his official cartoon I have not previously posted.

Open thread!

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